Trigger and enrollment
One trigger per sequence, of two kinds: a contact joins a list, or a contact is given a tag. Once enrolled, a contact isin_progress until they reach the end (completed) or leave the road
(stopped). Those two are not the same thing, and the screen counts them separately:
- completed — the journey went all the way, or reached an explicit end step;
- stopped — the contact unsubscribed or was suppressed, observed at the moment a step tried to send.
The steps
| Step | What it does |
|---|---|
| Send an email | Carries its own subject and content — it does not point at a template |
| Wait | Holds the contact for a delay before the next step |
| Add a tag / Remove a tag | Acts on the contact instead of writing to them |
| End the sequence | A planned ending, counted as completed |
| Webhook | Calls a URL of yours as the contact passes |
Draft and published version
A sequence is versioned. You edit a draft; publishing freezes it, and a published version never changes again. That is what makes an automation trustworthy: a contact who entered last month is walking the graph as it was when they entered. Only one version runs at a time. Publishing a new one applies it to contacts who enter afterwards. A sequence isactive or paused. Pausing stops new entries and holds the journeys in place.
Pausing does not free a slot. The plan ceiling counts every sequence you own, paused ones
included — there is no archive to put one on. Delete one to make room.
What refuses
Publishing is refused when the graph does not hold together, and the message names the steps at fault. Two cases are worth knowing in advance:- a step containing
{{topicOptOutUrl}}while the sequence carries no topic — the link would render empty and reach the recipient dead; - removing the topic from a sequence whose published version still contains that shortcode. Open a draft, remove it, publish — or keep a topic.